Naruto 45: starring plot, featuring flashbacks

“You two aren’t newbies who need to be protected anymore. You’re Shinobi that will have to surpass Kakasji-san and protect the Village.” – Don’t bother to remember it, they make Naruto for goldfish brains.

Naruto Shippuuden 45The Consequences of Betrayal

OMG! Hit me over the head and call me a Narutard but that last episode actually had some decent plot! There were more lines than should grace a single episode from a Shounen jump anime, at this rate those little heads will be filled with new perky concepts of political betrayal, Sun Tzu’s art of war, coup détats and underhanded dealings.

Ironically, the oriental way of expressing backstabbing is “It is good to strike the serpent’s head with your enemy’s hand.” and I think Danzou missed a subtle point here. The Chinese specifically says you don’t actually do a deal with the Serpent. Orochimaru is not gonna leave so much as a brick to shit on once he’s done with Konoha, and Danzou would be Hokage of a pile of dust.

Back in this episode, Sai’s faked demise fooled no one but it somehow seems appropriate that Sai’s skinny emo body would be found dangling from a rope tied to a tree. There is, of course, still no sign of Sasuke except one measly flashback. Flashbacks, which have now got beyond a (lucrative) joke. You see, when Naruto actually contains more than one story concept, it has to flashback to it again, even 5 minutes after it was said and I guarantee this “you have to protect Konoha yourselves one day” flashback will be repeated again and again… Until perhaps, a narutard has an epileptic spasm from the flashes, probably me.

Really? That cliffhanger ending was the most interesting part of the episode. It’s like Naruto being told he’s got anger management problems and will have to deal with it before he drives away his friends and family.